Could It Be?
by Jeanniefan78
Summary: Slightly AU because Kate was not killed. Something happens between Kate and Gibbs one evening as they are finishing up for the day that forever changes their lives professionally and personally. Also, the body of a dead Marine is discovered. In chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**Could It Be?**

**Written by: Jeanniefan78/April**

**Author's Note**: _This is my first NCIS fanfiction and the first in a series of stories I will be writing, Lord willing. This and the rest of my stories will be slightly AU because Kate is still alive. I refer to the Ari incident, but Kate was not killed-only almost killed. So I hope that you will enjoy this story as well my other stories that are to come. :)_

It was late in the evening. Most of the agency had already headed home. While Tony and McGee gathered up their stuff to head home, Gibbs continued to work at his computer and Kate continued to work on something that appeared to be frustrating her.

"Ugh! This stupid…"

"What's the matter, Kate? The computer turn you down?," Tony said, smiling.

Kate glared at him. "Shut up, Tony." She looks back at her computer. "I'm just trying to finish this report and the computer is not wanting to let me."

He shrugs his shoulders. "Whatever you say, Kate." Tony walks off toward the elevator.

"Maybe I can help you," McGee says, walking toward her desk.

"No thanks. I'll get it."

McGee shrugs. "Okay. I'll see you in the morning." He walks off toward the elevator.

"Goodnight," she calls after him.

"Night," he calls back.

Gibbs watches as Kate gets more and more frustrated.

"Kate, why don't you go home and hit it fresh in the morning? It's not like I'm gonna write you up or anything if you don't finish it tonight."

"Gibbs, I just want to get it done and over with."

After a few more minutes, Kate is ready to pull her hair out. "Ugh! Why won't this stupid thing work?!"

Gibbs gets up and walks over to her desk to see what is troubling her. "What isn't working, Kate? Show me."

"It's this stupid program! It keeps messing everything up and I keep having to redo parts of this report!"

"Calm down, Kate. Now, let me look at it." He stands behind her and leans over her left shoulder. He, then, extends his hands to her keyboard and starts pressing some keys.

"I don't think it's just the program, Kate. I think it's your computer. We may need to get you a new one. This one seems to keep freezing up and erasing some of the information you put in," he says, rebooting her computer.

"So, Tony was right. This dumb thing is turning me down."

"Haven't you learned by now to quit listening to that windbag?," Gibbs says, smiling slightly.

Kate chuckles. "I guess not."

"We'll try to get this report done as best as we can and then, you're going home."

Kate smiles. "Yes, Sir."

"And don't call me 'Sir'."

"Okay, okay."

After a few minutes, Kate's computer comes back up and Gibbs opens up her report. "Okay," he says. "It looks like you only lost a small part of your report." He starts typing again.

"Okay." She shifts in her chair while Gibbs is typing and she accidentally bumps him. Their heads turn to look at each other and upon their eyes meeting, both swallow hard.

Before either of them can utter a word, they lean in and their lips come together. After about five seconds, the kiss breaks.

"O-Oh my…," Kate says, quickly turning her head and slightly covering her mouth with her right hand.

"I, uh…," she says, standing up. "I-I-I…," she says, turning toward Gibbs, trying not to look at him. He, too, is trying to avoid looking at her.

"Kate…," he says, finally looking at her.

"No, it's…," she says, cutting him off. "It's…" She finally looks up at him. As their eyes meet once again, and without saying another word, they lean in and their lips come together. After a few seconds, the kiss breaks and Gibbs reaches up with his left hand and he lightly moves his hand across her forehead and moves a piece of her hair out of the way. Then, they very tenderly kiss again.

After a little while, the kiss breaks. "Y-You know what," Kate says, after catching her breath. "I-I think…I will wait…a-and finish this…i-in the morning." She, then, grabs her things and runs off toward the elevator. She gets on it as quickly as it opens.

After the elevator door shuts, she falls slightly backward against the back wall of the elevator. She puts her right hand on her chest.

"Wow," she thought to herself. "What the heck just happened?," she says out loud to herself.

She finally reaches the main floor and she dashes out of the building to her car and quickly gets in. After she throws her stuff to the passenger side of the car, she shuts the car door, buckles in, and then, grips the steering wheel. Then, she takes a deep breath and exhales.

"Oh my gosh," she says out loud to herself. "I kissed my boss…I kissed Gibbs."

She finally puts the key in the ignition, starts the car, pulls out of her parking space, and drives away.


	2. Chapter 2

Back in the bullpen, Gibbs stands by Kate's desk for a few more seconds after she got on the elevator. He, then, shuts off Kate's computer, walks over toward his desk, and sits down in his chair.

"What the heck just happened?," he thought to himself. Why did he kiss her? She was his employee for Pete sake!

After a few minutes, he shut off his computer, got up, gathered his stuff, and headed toward the elevator.


	3. Chapter 3

Back at his house, in the basement, Gibbs works on his boat and tries to make sense of what had just happened back at headquarters.

As he shaved a piece of wood on the boat, he thought to himself, "Why did I kiss her?...Why did she kiss me?...Why did either of us do that?" He paused.

As he stood there, he flashed back to the first kiss when Kate was sitting in her chair.

After that flashback, he thought to himself, "It was just an accident. Plain and simple." Then, he flashed back to the second kiss, beginning with Kate standing up and ended with Kate running off toward the elevator.

Upon thinking about the second kiss, he was puzzled. He could see once being an accident, but twice?! Why did they kiss a second time? Gibbs's gut told him that it was anything but an accident…on both their parts.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Tony steps off the elevator to find that Kate is already there.

"Good morning, Sunshine," he says, walking in.

Kate jumps and gasps slightly. "Tony, for Pete sake, would you stop sneaking up on me like that!," she growls.

"Who's sneaking! I'm coming in to work."

"Yes, but every time I get here before you, you make it a point to sneak up on me and scare me!"

"I do not!," he says, putting his stuff down and then sitting at his desk.

"You do, too!"

"Do not!" He flips his computer on.

"Do, too!"

"Do not!"

"Do, too!"

"Hey, hey, hey!," McGee says, walking up. "What are you two arguing about so early?"

"Nothing, McGee." Kate takes a freshly printed report off of her printer and starts thumbing through the paper.

"I do not!," Tony says, quietly.

"You do, too!" Kate says, quietly.

"Knock it…," Gibbs says, walking up.

Kate jumps and gasps slightly. Gibbs stops and looks at her and then, at Tony.

"Knock it off," Gibbs says, walking toward his desk. "Both of you."

Kate thumbs through her report, nervously.

Tony crouches his head. "See," he says, quietly. "It isn't me. You're just being jumpy."

Kate looks up and glares at him.

Gibbs looks in Tony's direction. "I said knock it off, DiNozzo."

Tony gets a scowl on his face and turns to his computer.

Gibbs's desk phone rings. "Yeah…Gibbs," he says, answering the phone. "On it." He hangs up the phone and gets up out of his chair. "Grab your gear. We have a dead Marine. McGee, get Ducky."

"Gotcha, Boss." McGee picks up his phone and dials.

Kate stands up and opens a desk drawer.

"Not you," Gibbs says, walking by her.

"Gibbs, it's been weeks since Ari came after us and you haven't let me go to one crime scene since!"

He stops and gives her a stern look. "I know, but you're still not going." He walks off.

Kate slams her desk drawer shut and sits back down with a major scowl on her face.

"Sorry, Kate," McGee says, walking up to her.

"Don't worry about it, McGee."

McGee walks off toward the elevator.

Gibbs, then, says something to Tony and then, Tony jogs briskly in Kate's direction.

"Okay, crybaby," Tony teases. "Gibbs changed his mind. He said you could come."

"Oh, ha ha," she says, standing up, opening her desk drawer, and then, getting her stuff.

"And who are you calling a crybaby," she says as she and Tony make their way to the elevator.

"Hurry it up," Gibbs says as Tony and Kate step on.

Kate makes a point not to look at Gibbs and gets on the elevator in such a way that Tony has to be between her and Gibbs.

"You. You've been ranting ever since I got here this morning!," Tony says, trying to be discreet.

"I have not!," she says, glaring at him.

"If you two boneheads don't shut up, I'm gonna put both my boots up both your butts."

Kate crosses her arms and looks the other way.


	5. Chapter 5

As they arrive at the Marine base at Quantico, a base Commander leads them to the body of a dead Marine. The body is in an office, sitting at a desk, with his head on the desk, and his arms hanging down toward the floor.

"His name is Staff Sgt. Bryan Mason," the base Commander informs them. "We found him this way, this morning."

"When was the last time you saw him alive?," Gibbs inquires.

McGee begins taking pictures of the crime scene. They all find circular oblong shaped pills scattered all over the desk and a small glass, tipped over, near the body's right side.

"Around 4:00 yesterday afternoon. He was finishing up some paperwork."

Ducky begins his assessment. "It appears our Staff Sergeant has been dead around 12 hours."

"It looks like a suicide," Kate says as she observes.

Tony smiles. "Chee, you're quick," he pops off.

Kate glares at him. "Shut up!," she says, wrinkling her nose.

"Make me!"

Gibbs looks in Tony's and Kate's direction and glares at them. They look at Gibbs and then, turn and walk in opposite directions.

"DiNozzo, bag and tag," Gibbs orders. He turns his attention back to the Commander. "Did he have a depression problem?"

"I'm not sure, Agent Gibbs. I didn't work that closely with him."

"Alright. We're gonna need to talk to his associates."

"Of course, Agent Gibbs." He goes to the doorway of the office. "Corporal."

The Corporal stands up out of his chair at attention. "Sir," he calls out.

"Set up a meeting room for Agent Gibbs and his team."

"Yes, Sir." The Corporal salutes and then, walks away.


	6. Chapter 6

Gibbs sits across the room from a Sgt. McRae. "How long have you known Staff Sgt. Mason?"

"Since boot camp, Agent Gibbs. We've been good friends ever since the day we met."

"Have you ever known him to have a depression problem?"

"Sometimes. But no more than anyone else. At least, not enough to commit suicide."

"What makes you say that, Sgt.?"

"That's just not who he was. Bryan would never take his own life."

"Alright," Gibbs says, standing up. "Thank you, Sgt."

"No problem, Agent Gibbs." Sgt. McRae leaves.

"Something is definitely fishy here," Kate speaks out.

"Yeah. Someone knows more than they're telling us," Gibbs says, with a look of suspicion.

"But who?," Tony asks.

"That's a good question," Gibbs says, with a pondering look on his face.


	7. Chapter 7

Back at headquarters, Gibbs walks in to Abby's lab with a Caf-Pow and sets it next to Abby, who is at work in front of her computers.

"What do you have, Abs?," Gibbs inquires.

"Okay, I've identified the pills on the Staff Sergeant's desk as Vicodin. If he took enough of those at one time, it could have killed him. Of course, if he took enough of anything at one time, it could have killed him…"

"Abs…," he says, cutting her off.

"Sorry…"

"Don't apologize. It's a sign of weakness."

Abby gives him a look. "Okay, and the fingerprints on the glass are definitely that of Staff Sgt. Mason. However, I found no trace of his saliva on the glass. So, if there isn't any of his saliva on the glass, I don't see how he could have drank from it."

Gibbs pats Abby on the back. "Good work, Abs."

As Gibbs walks out of the lab, Abby smiles and goes back to work.


	8. Chapter 8

Upstairs in the bullpen, Tony notices that Kate is still uptight. "Kate, is there anything you want to talk about?"

"No," Kate says, annoyed. "Why?"

"Well, you've only been on edge all day and quite snappy I might add."

"Well, excuse me," she snaps.

Tony is quiet for a moment and then grins. "Wait a minute. I get it now."

"You get what?," she asks, looking up from her work.

"It's PMS right?"

Kate gets very annoyed. "Okay, one, I cannot believe you would say PMS to me and two, even if there was something wrong, I wouldn't tell you because it would be none of your business!" She smiles a fake smile, looks back down at the paper on her desk, and continues working.

Gibbs comes walking in. "She has…" Kate jumps and gasps slightly. Gibbs stops and looks briefly at her. Then, he continues toward his desk. "She has a point, DiNozzo."

Tony gives Kate a look.

"Okay," Gibbs begins. "Abby identified the pills as Vicodin. The prints on the glass definitely belong to Staff Sgt. Mason, but, she found none of his saliva on the glass."

"If she didn't find any of his saliva on the glass, he couldn't have drank from it," Tony says.

"Ya think, DiNozzo?," Gibbs snaps.

"Then someone had to have set him up," McGee chimes in.

"It looks that way," Gibbs says, sitting down at his desk.

"Jethro," Ducky says, walking up. "I need you in autopsy."

Gibbs gets up and follows Ducky with McGee, Tony, and Kate following behind him.


	9. Chapter 9

Ducky, Gibbs, McGee, Tony, and Kate all file in to autopsy.

"What do you have?," Gibbs inquires.

"Our Staff Sergeant did not die from an overdose on these pills. Someone forced them down his throat," Ducky informs them.

Tony gets a confused look on his face. "How do you figure that?"

"Well, one, the pills I found in his stomach were not digested. They entered his system sometime after his demise. Along with the pills, I found little chips of wood in his stomach. I also found traces of wood and possible traces of pencil lead in his mouth. It looks as though someone used a pencil to poke the pills down our Staff Sergeant's throat."

"Eew!" Kate looks disgusted.

"So he WAS murdered."

"I'm afraid so, Jethro."

"The question is how." Gibbs pauses briefly. "Okay, McGee and Kate, you two get his wife in here and see what she has to say." He starts walking out of autopsy. "DiNozzo, you're with me."

"Where are we going?"

"Back to the base."


	10. Chapter 10

Later, in interrogation, McGee and Kate walk in and prepare to question an obviously grieving widow.

"Mrs. Mason," Kate begins. "I'm Special Agent Todd." Kate shakes Mrs. Mason's hand and then, gestures toward McGee. "And this is Special Agent McGee."

McGee extends his hand to Mrs. Mason and then, pulls up a chair and he and Kate sit down across the table from Mrs. Mason.

"Mrs. Mason," McGee begins. "I know this is going to be hard, but we need to ask you some questions."

"Okay." Mrs. Mason wipes a tear from her right eye.

"Mrs. Mason, do you know of anyone who would want to hurt your husband or want him dead?," Kate inquires.

"No. Everyone loved Bryan."

"Do you know of anyone who might have had any kind of an issue with your husband?," McGee inquires.

"No. As I said, everyone loved him."

"Mrs. Mason," Kate says. "I can't even imagine how painful this must be for you." Kate takes a deep breath and then exhales. "But, we need you to try and think. Has your husband spoken of any kind of trouble he's had or been having with anyone?"

"Well," she sniffles. "He said he had gotten into an argument with one of his men the other day, but, I can't imagine it being bad enough that he would be killed over it."

"Did he say what the argument was about?," McGee asks.

"No. He just said it was nothing."

"Who was this man?," Kate asks.

"Corporal Jameson, I believe."

"Can you think of anything else at all that could help us?"

"Not at the moment, Agent Todd."

"Okay," Kate says, standing up and extending her hand. "Thank you for coming in. Our condolences on the loss of your husband."

"Thank you, Agent Todd."

"If you think of anything at all that might help us," McGee says as he hands her a business card. "Please give us a call." He extends his hand to her.

"Certainly," she says as she's ushered out of interrogation. She walks away as McGee and Kate look on.

"Kate? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, McGee. You better call Gibbs and let him know what we found out."

"Right." McGee takes out his cell phone and dials.


	11. Chapter 11

Later that evening, as Kate opens the door to her apartment and walks inside, she realizes how tired she is. She puts her purse and keys on her coffee table and then, takes off her jacket and hangs it on a coat rack. She reaches around her neck to her left shoulder and massages. She, then, does the same thing to her right shoulder.

Then, she makes her way to the sofa and plops down. This had been the most uptight day she had had since Ari came after her, Abby, and Gibbs.

As she leaned back against the back of the sofa, she flashed back to the first kiss she shared with Gibbs the night before. After that, she flashed back to the second kiss.

After that, she began thinking to herself how long she had dreamt of that happening. The more she thought about it, the more she realized she had fallen head over heels in love with her boss.

"But, what good is it?," she thought to herself. "He will never feel the same way about me."

As nervous and as uptight as she had been that day, especially when Gibbs was around, he was the same ol' Gibbs. He acted as though nothing had happened. But, she knew that because of what had happened between them the night before, things would never be the same between them.

She sat up, shrugged her shoulders, got up, and headed for the kitchen.


	12. Chapter 12

"_You just go up here and then there," Gibbs says, standing behind Kate with his hands guiding her hands, as he shows her how to shave the wood on his boat._

"_Okay," she says, smiling._

"_Then," he says, guiding her hands and really close to her right ear. "Go a little to the right."_

_Kate giggles and rubs her ear with her shoulder. "Don't do that."_

"_Do what?," Gibbs says, smiling._

"_Talk right in my ear like that. It tickles."_

"_Oh really," he says in her ear._

_Kate giggles and flinches as Gibbs talks in her ear. "Stop."_

"_How's this?," he says in her ear._

"_Will you quit?!," Kate says, laughing and trying to cover her ear with her shoulder._

_As Gibbs continues to playfully talk in her ear, Kate laughs and tries to wiggle free, but, Gibbs has too good a grip on her arms._

"_Stop!," she cries in a high pitched tone as she laughs._

_Gibbs finally relents and Kate settles down. She turns her head to her right to look at him. "You are so bad," she teases._

"_Am I now?" He leans in and kisses her._

All of a sudden, Kate jerks herself awake and realizes she was dreaming. She sits up in her bed, slightly.

"Oh for crying out loud," she thinks to herself. "Why am I being tortured?!"


	13. Chapter 13

The next day, after Ducky finished the autopsy, the team found out that the Staff Sergeant's kidneys and liver were badly damaged and that death occurred through asphyxiation. Then, the urine sample sent to Abby for testing was very dark. It became even more of a mystery when they learned from his wife and his medical records that he had no health problems. It was looking more and more like he was poisoned somehow. But how, with what, and by whom?

The day after that, Kate sits at her computer, nervously typing away. Tony looks up from his work, from time to time, and watches her. He couldn't, for the life of him, figure out what was up with her. She had been so uptight and jumpy the last few days and every time he said anything to her, she snapped at him.

"Abby's…," Gibbs says, zipping through the bullpen, but stops briefly as Kate jumps and gasps slightly. "Abby's lab," he continues as he walks toward the elevator.

As McGee and Kate follow Gibbs, Tony follows behind Kate and looks on in bewilderment.

As the elevator door opens, Gibbs leads the way into Abby's lab. "What do you have, Abs?"

"I believe I have found what Staff Sgt. Mason was poisoned with. Strychnine."

"Strychnine?," Tony says in shock.

"Yes. I found toxic levels in everything I tested. It's in his urine, his blood, everything."

"Any idea how?," Gibbs inquires.

"Well, Ducky said there were no injection marks on the body and his saliva had traces of strychnine. So, it looks like he ingested it through food or liquid."

"As close as it was to the evening, someone could have put it in his dinner," Kate states.

"Chee, ya think, Agent Todd?," Gibbs snaps.

Kate glares at him and then ducks her head.

"So," Abby says, trying to prevent an argument from erupting. "According to the CDC, people who are poisoned with strychnine by ingestion usually start displaying symptoms within 15 to 60 minutes of being poisoned. Symptoms include agitation, restlessness, muscle pain and soreness, difficulty breathing, they're easily startled."

"Well, the people we talked to a couple of days ago said that he seemed very agitated and restless that evening in a meeting they were in with him," Tony states.

Gibbs's cell phone rings. "Yeah…Gibbs," Gibbs says into his phone. "Alright. Thanks, Commander," he says after about a minute and then hangs up the phone.

"That was Commander Chase at Quantico. He said he has a witness that saw a Corporal Jameson follow Staff Sgt. Mason to his office after the meeting and then saw him come back out of the office an hour later."

Kate's eyes widen slightly. "Hey…McGee, isn't that…"

"Yeah," McGee says, nodding his head. "Staff Sgt. Mason's wife told Kate and me that he told her that he had gotten into an argument with a Corporal Jameson the other day, but wouldn't tell her what it was about."

"Alright, let's go dig up everything we can on this guy." Gibbs looks at Abby. "Good work, Abs." He turns and walks out with Tony and McGee following him.

As Kate starts to follow them out, Abby grabs her by the left arm and drags her to the room in the back of her lab and closes the sliding door behind them.

"Abby," Kate says in surprise. "What are you doing?"

"Alright, Kate, what is going on?," Abby asks, genuinely concerned.

Kate raises an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"I am talking about you and Gibbs."

Kate starts feeling nervous and her heart starts pounding faster. "W-What do you mean?"

"Come on, Kate. I know things have been kind of tense around here since that showdown with Ari, but the last few days, you and Gibbs both have been acting funny. Did you guys have a fight about something?"

"Abby, I don't know what you're talking about." Kate starts to leave, but Abby blocks her in and gives her a stern look.

"Do you consider me to be an intelligent person, Kate?"

"Yeah," Kate says, nervously.

"Then don't insult me by lying to me. Now, you're not leaving here until you tell me the truth. Things seemed to finally start settling down after Ari, but the last few days, you have been uptight, nervous, and no offense, but also somewhat snippy. And Gibbs," she says, gesturing with her hands. "Well, even for him, has been more uptight than usual and I know all of this can't be because of Ari. So, I'm going to ask you again. WHAT is going on?"

Kate sighs and ducks her head. "Okay." She looks back up at Abby. "You're right…and I'm sorry for lying to you."

"It's okay. I forgive you. Just tell me what's going on. And know that whatever is said here, stays here."

"Okay," Kate agrees. "Well," she says, turning her head slightly to the left and then back. "Monday evening, we were all finishing up for the day. Tony and McGee had finished their work and they left. I, on the other hand, was having trouble finishing a report because my computer kept freezing up on me." She pauses briefly and sighs. "I don't know what Gibbs was working on, but he saw me getting more and more frustrated and came over to my desk to help me. He rebooted my computer and after it came back on, he opened up the report I was working on. He discovered I had only lost a small portion of the report. Well…while he was typing…I…shifted in my chair and accidentally bumped him. We both turned our heads and looked at each other and…u-uh…well, the next thing I knew, we were kissing."

Abby's eyes widen slightly. "Oh, wow."

"Yeah," Kate agrees. "That's how I felt. I think we were both surprised. But, I stood up from my chair and I tried so hard not to look at him and I could hardly talk. Finally, he started to say something and I cut him off and I looked up at him and I was about to say something. Then, the next thing I knew, we had our arms around each other and we were kissing…again. This time, it seemed to go on longer. And then after we come apart, I said I'd finish the report the next morning and I got out of there as fast as I possibly could."

"Oh my gosh," Abby says, smiling and with excitement.

"What are you smiling at? And what are you so happy about?"

"Oh my gosh!," Abby squeals, hugging Kate.

"Abby…"

"Kate," Abby says, looking at her straight in the eyes. "Don't you know what this means?"

"Yeah, it means I kissed my boss and he kissed me."

"Kate, you know darn well there's more to it than that."

"What?"

"Come on, Kate. Admit it. There was a reason you guys kissed."

"Abby, it was…" She's cut off by another stern look on Abby's face.

"Kate, I am not stupid nor am I blind…You're in love with him, aren't you?"

Kate starts shaking, looks at the floor, and bites her lower lip.

"Kate?"

Kate looks up at Abby with a look that pleads with her not to ask that again.

"You're in love with him, aren't you?"

Kate takes a shuddering breath and looks back down at the floor. "A-Abby…"

"Come on, Kate. Just tell me the truth."

"Alright," Kate says, lifting her head with eyes closed. She, then, opens her eyes and looks at Abby. "Yes…I'm…in love with him." Kate starts walking in a circle. "I have fallen hopelessly and helplessly in love with Gibbs." She stops walking where she started.

Abby reaches out and touches Kate's right shoulder.

Kate takes a shuddering breath and looks to her left. "O-Oh my gosh. I-I can't believe I said that out loud."

"You needed to," Abby says, trying to be encouraging.

Kate looks back at Abby. "I love him, Abby." She looks upward, slightly, as her eyes well up with tears, and then, looks back down at Abby. "I love him so much it…," her voice trails off. "…it's making me crazy." She pauses and wipes a tear from her right eye. "But what's the use? He doesn't feel the same way about me and he never will."

"Oh, right. I'm sure that's why he kissed you like he did."

"Oh, please, Abby. He's been acting as though nothing happened."

"Kate, if you'll think hard and long enough about it, this is Gibbs we're talking about. He's very stubborn and bullheaded."

"Abby…"

"I'm serious, Kate. I've worked with him and known him a lot longer than you have. I know how he can be. But, I've seen something different in him ever since you came to work here two years ago. Think back to when you guys first met. Remember when you and Agent Fornell were here at NCIS and we were all upstairs discussing that Commander's death?"

"Yeah?"

"And remember when Gibbs asked you if he could accompany you on the President's flight?"

"Yeah?"

"Okay, think about it. You got him to say something that we here hadn't heard him say before."

"What?"

"He said 'please'. Remember?"

Kate smiles, slightly, and shakes her head.

"Like I said, he's very stubborn and bullheaded. And not just anyone could make Leroy Jethro Gibbs say 'please'."

"Oh, Abby, really…"

"I'm serious. He really does feel the same way about you and he has for a long time."

"Well, he's sure got a funny way of showing it." Kate crosses her arms.

"Kate, listen to me. You say he has a funny way of showing his feelings for you. Have you ever really thought over the last month about why he's acted so funny about you since that showdown with Ari?"

Kate looks confused. " I don't follow you."

"Okay, if you'll remember correctly, that buzzard held you hostage twice: that time in autopsy when I had you take Ducky that evidence and then that time he kidnapped you. Then, when that buzzard resurfaces, he nearly kills you this time. And yes, I know, he came after me and Gibbs, too, but that's beside the point. I know that Gibbs has left you behind here at headquarters a lot since that showdown with Ari, right?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, think about it. Ari held you hostage twice and nearly kills you when he comes around the third time." Abby pauses, briefly, to see if Kate understands, but Kate still looks confused. "Gibbs is scared, Kate. Even though Ari is dead now, he's still scared of something happening to you."

"Wow…I guess I never thought of it that way."

"And also, you know he's been divorced three times."

"Yeah?"

"I believe he's also scared of getting hurt again. He's probably been dead set on not getting married again since his third divorce, but like I said earlier. I've seen something different in him since you came to work here two years ago."

"What are you? A forensic scientist or a psychologist?"

"I may not be Dr. Phil, but like I said earlier, I'm not blind and I'm not stupid. And now that I know what happened between you two Monday evening, it's all starting to make sense now."

"What do you mean?"

"You two kissing and the way it happened was no accident. It's forced both of you to face what you've both been trying to fight and hide for two years now. As I said, Gibbs has been divorced three times and I believe he's scared of getting hurt again. When you two kissed the other night, for those brief moments, he allowed himself to feel what he already feels for you, in a free way. And now that he has confronted how he feels about you, he's trying to convince himself he's not supposed to feel this way about you because of one reason or another and so he tries to "stuff" his feelings and therefore does so by pretending that what happened didn't and by being uptight or whatever."

Kate smiles in amazement. "Are you sure you didn't study psychology?"

"I'm positive," Abby says, smiling. She puts both of her hands on both of Kate's shoulders. "Look, I know it makes it doubly awkward because of Gibbs's rule about not dating coworkers, especially a boss and his agent, and that romance between agents never work. To me, that is a bunch of pish posh. Now, you and he are following the rules, but your heart and his heart aren't following the rules. That's what I've learned about people's feelings and their hearts. People's hearts and the feelings of their hearts want what they want and to heck with the rules and consequences. So, tell me the truth, Kate. What does your heart say you want and what does your gut tell you?"

"Well," she says as her eyes well up with tears. "Really thinking about it, my gut tells me that the things you've said…are true. And my heart says that I love him and that I want him."

"And I bet you anything his heart and his gut are saying the same things to him."

"I think I understand a little better what you're saying now, Abby." Kate smiles slightly. "It's kind of refreshing to think he really could feel the same way about me."

"He does, Kate. Whether you believe it or not, he is in love with you."

"Oh, Abby, I sat in my apartment the other night, thinking about what happened and I really started thinking about how long I'd been dreaming of that happening."

Abby raises her eyebrows. "You actually dream about him?"

"Yes…"

"Oh, how romantic!"

Kate smiles and shakes her head. "Then when we kissed the other night, to me, it felt like I was in another world. And before you ask, I'm just gonna go ahead and say no. There was no resistance from him."

"Kate, that is just so romantic!"

Kate chuckles.

"Tell me what you love about him."

"Well, aside from the fact he can be a real jerk sometimes, he's…he's a very loving, caring, and kind man. He's strong and has a beautiful and gentle side to him. Then, of course, he has the most gorgeous blue eyes that literally make me go weak at the knees."

"Aww, Kate…" Abby hugs her.

"Well, Abby," she says, breaking the hug. "I better get upstairs before I get in trouble...Thank you, for this talk. It really did help me."

"Kate, I consider you to be one of my best friends and I'm here for you anytime you need me."

"Thanks, Abby. You're one of my best friends, too."

"Another hug," Abby says, gesturing for another hug. "Caitlin Todd-Gibbs," she says, hugging Kate. "It has a nice ring to it," she teases.

Kate breaks the hug. "Ha, ha. Very funny."

Abby does a little dance and smiles. "I know."

Kate starts toward the door. "Well, I better go and see what I can do to help dig up the dirt on Corporal Jameson."

Abby smiles. "Come talk to me anytime."

"Thanks. I will," Kate says, smiling back.


	14. Chapter 14

"Alright. Who has what?," Gibbs says, walking into the bullpen.

"Well, according to his records," McGee begins. "Corporal Jameson has been on disciplinary probation several times in the last two years. Apparently, he has a problem following orders and with authority in general. It's a wonder he even made it to Corporal."

"And it also appears that our Corporal was about to be demoted at Staff Sgt. Mason's recommendation," Tony adds.

"And the interesting thing I found out was that Staff Sgt. Mason was never prescribed Vicodin, but Corporal Jameson's medical records show that he was prescribed Vicodin for neck pain," Kate adds.

"So the pills we found must belong to Corporal Jameson," Tony says.

"Ya think, DiNozzo?," Gibbs snaps.

"But, we still don't have a connection between him and the strychnine," McGee points out.

"DiNozzo, take McGee. Go get the dirtbag for questioning. I'll yank it out of him."

"On it, Boss." Tony and McGee get their gear and head for the elevator while Gibbs goes upstairs and Kate sits down at her desk.


	15. Chapter 15

Gibbs walks into interrogation very calmly and sits down across the table from Corporal Jameson.

"Agent Gibbs, what's this all about? I thought I answered all of your questions."

"You did," he says, calmly. "We just have a few more things to clear up."

"Like what?"

"Well, let's start with the argument you and Staff Sgt. Mason had the other day."

"I already told you, Agent Gibbs. It was about an assignment I didn't do correctly."

"Come on, Corporal. You know it was more than that." He pauses briefly. "Look, I know how it is. I was a Marine once and I couldn't stand to be ordered around like a little puppy dog."

Behind the mirror of the observation room, McGee and Tony start laughing and Kate shakes her head with a smirk on her face.

"This ought to be good," Tony says.

"Yeah, I wonder where he's going with this," McGee says, still smiling slightly.

"Agent McGee," Director Shepard says without taking her eyes off the window. "When you've known Gibbs as long as I have, you'll discover anything is possible."

"Isn't that the truth," Kate mutters.

"Look, Agent Gibbs, Staff Sgt. Mason and I had our differences, but that's it."

"Come on, Corporal. Everyone knows how he was. He probably thought he was General Patton and could do whatever he wanted to you."

Corporal Jameson starts getting nervous and his face starts to harden.

"He probably pushed you and pushed you until you couldn't take it anymore. Who could blame you?" Gibbs pauses briefly. "Why'd you do it?"

Corporal Jameson looks at Gibbs with a hard and angry look on his face. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Well, how about this?," Gibbs says, raising his voice and leaning, slightly, across the table. "I have a witness who says they saw you going into his office the night he was killed, around the time he died, and then, back out an hour later. Plus, I have another witness who saw you poisoning his dinner."

From behind the mirror, McGee raises an eyebrow. "Did he just…"

"Yeah, Probie. I believe Gibbs is doing just what he said he was gonna do," Tony says, cutting McGee off.

"What's the matter, Corporal? Cat got your tongue?," Gibbs says, sitting back in his chair.

Corporal Jameson looks down at the table and then back up at Gibbs. "The buzzard was gonna have me demoted. I tried to reason with him, but he just wouldn't listen." He sits back in his chair and crosses his arms. "So, I took care of him. I laced his food with strychnine and then I set him up to look like he killed himself. If he would've listened to me, he wouldn't have wound up dead."

Gibbs glares at him.

"How's that for a real sicko?," Kate says in astonishment, from behind the mirror.

"No kidding," McGee agrees.

As Gibbs gets up to leave the interrogation room, Director Shepard, Tony, McGee, and Kate all file out of the observation room.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs says, meeting the group in the hallway. "Read the dirtbag his rights."

"With pleasure, Boss." Tony disappears into the interrogation room.

Gibbs looks at McGee and Kate, hardfaced. "You two go find something to do."

As Kate and McGee walk off, Director Shepard looks at Gibbs in bewilderment. "Aren't you being a little rough on your team, Jethro? They did, after all, work their butts off in helping bring this guy down."

Gibbs looks at Director Shepard. "It's their job." He starts to walk off.

"Jethro."

Gibbs stops and turns around.

"I want to see you upstairs, in my office, in 15 minutes."

Gibbs continues walking away.


	16. Chapter 16

Several minutes later, Gibbs comes walking into the Director's office. "What is it?"

"What has gotten into you, Jethro?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about you, Jethro."

Gibbs stares at her.

"Look, I know things have been kind of crazy since the final showdown with Ari. I know that monster put you and your team through heck, but you all made it and Ari is dead. After a little while, you seemed to settle down. But over the last few days, you've been impossible. Now, I'm not gonna force you to tell me what's going on with you, but you need to find some way to deal with whatever is bothering you. And you need to stop taking things out on the team."

Gibbs continues to stare at her. "Are you through?"

"Yes."

Gibbs turns and walks out the door. He stops and stands outside the doorway to the waiting area outside the Director's office. The more he thinks about it, the more he knows Director Shepard is right.

He walks over to the railing and looks downstairs at his team as they work. After a couple of minutes, he heads downstairs and makes his way to McGee's desk. He bends down and says something to McGee, straightens up, and then shakes McGee's hand.

He, then, makes his way to Tony's desk and does the same thing.

"Kate," he says, heading in the direction of the elevator. "Come with me. We need to talk."

Kate's heart starts beating faster as she gets up and follows behind Gibbs.

Upon the elevator's opening, Gibbs ushers Kate on the elevator ahead of him and then, steps on behind her. He presses the button to close the door and then after a couple of seconds, he flips the switch to shut the elevator off. He turns and looks directly at Kate.

Kate looks back at him with her arms crossed and an angry look on her face. "What do you want?"

"We have to talk, Kate."

"Oh, really." She shrugs. "I wasn't under the impression that we had anything to talk about."

"Kate…"

"Oh, right," she says in a sarcastic tone. "Monday night." She glares at him and drops her arms. "I suppose you're gonna tell me it was an accident. I slipped on the floor and your lips broke my fall…No, wait…You slipped on the floor and my lips broke your fall…No, wait. Here's one even better for you. We both slipped on the floor and our lips broke each other's fall!"

"Kate, stop it! I was not gonna say that…Ever since Monday night, I have tried over and over to make sense out of it. I tried to convince myself it was an accident, but the more I did that, the more I knew it wasn't an accident."

"So, what are you saying?"

"I'm not really sure." They both pause in silence.

"Are you scared, Gibbs?," Kate says, in a softer tone, breaking the silence.

"Am I what?"

"I said, 'Are you scared?'. I know I am." Her eyes begin to fill up with tears. She turns her head to the right as she tries to fight off the tears, but to no avail. She turns her head back and wipes trickling tears from her eyes. "Ever since I came to work here, I have been afraid of what I feel for you. The more I've tried to fight my feelings for you over the last two years, the stronger they've gotten. Then Monday night when we…" She gestures with her hands. "It was like they just "boiled" over…" She wipes more tears from her eyes. She, then, looks directly at Gibbs. "So, there you have it…I've fallen in love with you. Even though I tried not to, I did." She turns and faces the wall with her back to Gibbs.

"Kate…," he says, softly.

She turns back around and looks at him. "But what's the use?" She sniffles. "It's obvious you either don't feel the same way about me or you do and you're too sacred and/or stubborn to do anything about it." She sniffles again.

"Oh really," he says, becoming assertive.

"Yeah," she says, defensively.

"You think so…"

"Yes, I do."

"Well, how obvious is this?" He presses her against the back wall of the elevator and presses his lips against hers. After a few seconds, the kiss breaks.

"What was that?," Kate says in shock.

"You need me to show you again?"

"Yeah."

He pulls her closer and gently brings her lips to his. She practically melts as she wraps her arms around him and as he wraps his arms around her.

"Oh my…," she says after they come gently apart.

Gibbs gets a smirk on his face. "You were right, Kate. I am scared. You know my rule about dating coworkers and what I've said about it not working."

"Yes, I've heard you say that more than once."

"Then, after Monday night…"

"I know," she says, softly.

"Kate, you know how I've always been about apologies."

"Oh, yes," she says, rolling her eyes.

"But let me make one now. I am sorry for the way I've been acting these last few days."

Kate smiles. "It's okay, Gibbs. And I'm sorry, too."

He takes her hands in his. "It's okay. And please do me a favor."

"What?"

"Call me Jethro."

"Okay…Jethro."

He puts his left hand on her right shoulder, leans down, and very tenderly, kisses her.

After they gently come apart, Gibbs looks at her, very closely, in the face. "Do you know that you are on my mind all the time? I find myself smiling, just thinking about you."

Kate smiles. "Same here." With her left hand behind his beck, she pulls his head closer til his lips are once again touching hers.

Upon the kiss breaking, Kate and Gibbs chuckle slightly.

"You do realize I'm gonna have to transfer now."

"I know."

She brushes his lips, softly, with her own.

"I'll let the Director know. And if you're interested, I hear that Shandra Zuckerman, upstairs, has an opening on her team and I just know she'd love to have you."

"Okay," Kate says, with a bit of enthusiasm.

"And the best part is, if I ever get in a bind, I'd be able to borrow you and there are other indirect ways you could work with us if I need you."

Kate gives him a playful look. "I see you've already been doing your homework."

Gibbs shrugs innocently. "Yeah, well…"

Kate smiles. "So, what now?"

"Well," he says, innocently. "Do you wanna have dinner with me tonight?"

"I'd love that," she says, with a smile.

"And we're gonna have to keep this low-key until your transfer goes through, which shouldn't be but a few days and that ought to make it by the middle of next week.."

"Sounds good to me." Kate pauses briefly. "Boy, Abby had us pegged."

"Abby?," he says, looking confused.

"She cornered me this morning."

"Ah, I see."

"Yeah, she knew something was up and she wouldn't let me leave the lab until I told her everything. She even pinpointed why you were acting the way you have and the fact that I'm the only one who's ever gotten you to say please."

"Did she now…"

"Don't you remember right after we met and I was here at headquarters along with Agent Fornell, discussing Commander Trapp's death? You asked me if you could accompany me on the President's flight and when I didn't say anything at first, you said please."

"Oh, I see. Yeah, I remember," he says, smiling slightly.

"You know, I understand we need to keep this low-key until my transfer, but we really should go tell Abby. Cause you know I couldn't keep it from her even if I wanted to. If we don't tell her, she's just gonna drag it out of me like she did this morning."

"You have a point." He pauses briefly. "Okay, let's go down and tell her." He puts his right arm around her shoulder and then, turns the elevator back on.


	17. Chapter 17

Abby is working at a computer, standing up, as Gibbs and Kate make their way into her lab, with their arms around the other's back.

Abby looks excited. "Hey guys!"

"We have something to tell you," Kate says, gleefully.

"Well, first of all, Abs, you know how I usually am about apologies, but I'm handing them out today. I'm sorry for acting so uptight lately."

Abby smiles. "It's okay. I forgive you."

"And you did good work with everything. I appreciate it."

Abby is touched. "Aww, that's so sweet. Thanks, Gibbs."

"Kate?," he says, gesturing his left hand toward her.

Kate smiles, excitedly. "Well, we wanted you to be the first to know that we talked everything out and…"

Abby waits with anticipation.

"And…," Kate continues. "We're gonna give this a shot."

Abby runs and leaps in their direction and hugs them both at the same time. "Oh my gosh, you guys!," she squeals. She breaks the hug. "Congratulations! Both of you! I can't think of a more perfect couple than you two."

"Thanks, Abby," Kate says with a smile.

"Now, Abs, other than the Director, you're gonna be the only other one to know about us. We're keeping this relationship low-key until Kate's transfer goes through, which should be by the middle of next week."

"Oh, yeah, that's right. You do have to transfer now, don't you?"

"Yeah, we hear that Shandra Zuckerman is needing someone and so we're gonna try and get me put on her team."

"Oh, yes!," Abby says with excitement. "Shandra is one of the sweetest people ever and you'll just love working with her."

"And, I still may get to work indirectly with this team from time to time when they need me."

"Oh my gosh, you guys! This is just the best news ever!"

"Remember, Abs. This is just between all of us. You can't tell anyone."

"Oh, don't worry, Gibbs. Your secret is safe with me." She smiles.

"Good work, Abs. I'll bring you an extra Caf-Pow tomorrow. Now, I'm gonna go tell DiNozzo and McGee to go home." He looks at Kate. "Then, you and I can go."

"Okay," Kate says, smiling.

Gibbs leaves the lab.

"Aww, Kate!" Abby hugs Kate. "Didn't I tell you?," she says, breaking the hug.

Kate laughs. "Yes, you certainly did. And, you we're right. He was scared."

"I thought so," Abby agrees. "And did I hear right? You and he are fixing to go somewhere?"

"Yes, he's taking me out to dinner."

"Well, you go and enjoy."

"Thanks, Abby," she says, heading out. "See you in the morning," she calls back.


	18. Chapter 18

The next morning, Kate comes walking in to work to find Tony and McGee already there.

"Good morning," she says, cheerfully.

"Well," Tony says, slightly surprised. "You sure seem to be in a better mood."

"Why shouldn't I be in a good mood?"

"Well, you haven't been in a good mood the last few days."

"Oh…that. Well… Don't get used to hearing this, but I apologize." She gestures with her right hand back and forth between Tony and McGee. "To both of you."

"What was that?" Tony puts his right hand to his ear. "I didn't quite get that," he teases.

"Oh very funny."

McGee is smiling and shaking his head. "It's okay, Kate."

Tony is laughing. "Don't worry, Kate. Everyone has bad days." He pauses briefly. "So who is he?"

"What?," she asks, trying to get settled.

"Who is he?"

"Tony…"

"Come on, Kate. It's written all over your face. You had a date last night, didn't you?"

"Maybe I did. Maybe I didn't. And even if I did, I wouldn't tell you who with."

"Why not? Afraid I might know him?"

Kate shakes her head with a grin on her face as she steadily taps keys on her keyboard.

"No matter." Tony leans back in his chair with his hands laced behind his head. "I'll figure it out."

"Not even if it snows on the 4th of July, Tony," she teases.

"She has a point, DiNozzo," Gibbs says, walking up and toward his desk.

Tony quickly sits up and goes back to work at his computer. "Morning, Boss."

Gibbs looks back, slightly, in Kate's direction, with a smirk on his face and winks at her.

Kate smiles and goes on typing.

Within seconds, Gibbs hears the little chime from his computer, signaling to him he has an email. He sits down at his computer and sees that the email is from Kate. He opens it and finds it to read:

Good morning, Handsome. :)

He looks over in Kate's direction with a very pleased look on his face.

She glances at him and smiles.

Gibbs, then, looks at his computer and steadily taps some keys on his keyboard.

Within seconds, Kate hears the email chime. She looks at her email and sees a response from Gibbs. She opens it and finds it to read:

Good morning yourself, Beautiful. :)

Kate smiles from ear to ear as she keeps on working.

THE END

Strychnine information came from the CDC and Wikipedia websites.

©2009 By Jeanniefan78/April*No part of this story may be performed or reproduced in any way, in whole or in part, without prior written consent of the author.*All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. Some characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated or affiliated with the owners, creators, cast, crew, or producers of NCIS or any media franchise. This is strictly for fan enjoyment only. No copyright infringement is intended.


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